• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Plan Curtail

Our Mission: To help those taking
personal responsibility for climate healing.

Facebook Icon
YouTube Icon

  • Home
  • Climate
  • Housing
  • Cars
  • Food
  • Goods and Services
  • Cuba
  • Blog
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Donate

Plug-In Cars Are No Better Than Hybrids

Electric Cars aren't as C02 friendly as we thinkPlan Curtail can help drivers make well-informed choices when choosing low-emission vehicles. Cars generate close to a third of the CO2 in the U.S., about 4.5 metric tons per car per year. The population of cars in the world is increasing rapidly, making it ever more difficult to counter climate change. Worldwide 88 million cars were produced in 2014, bringing the total number of cars in the world to over one billion. Car companies and government agencies have made choosing a low-emissions vehicle more difficult by misrepresenting the actual fuel economy (MPG) and associated CO2 emissions of electric cars. Familiar plug-in models, such as the Volt and Leaf, are claimed to achieve 98 to 114 MPG equivalent.

The reports in this section cover the history of plug-in cars, both battery electric vehicles (BEV) and plug-in hybrid (sometimes called a pluggable hybrid) electric vehicles (PHEV). They also include yearly sales updates of plug-ins and hybrids from 2011 through 2015.

These reports show that when the CO2 generated by a power plant is included, a typical electric car averages 40-50 MPG equivalent and generates 7-12% more emissions than a Prius. The Department of Energy says that hybrid cars generate 0.51 lbs. of CO2 per mile while BEV’s generate 0.54 lbs. of CO2 per mile and PHEV’s generate 0.61 lbs. of CO2 per mile.

When choosing either a new or used car, understanding the true CO2 emissions of plug-in cars can lead to the best low-emission selection for reducing car impact on the climate. Even better, share a ride, bike, and walk.

Plug-In History

U.S. Plug-In Sales Falter | January 15, 2016

Will US Plug-In Cars “Peak” in 2015? | April 2015

Requiem for Plug-In Cars | February 2014

The Second Death of the Electric Car | February 2013

The Priuseqv Proposal | April 2012

Reviewing EPA’s FuelEconomy.Gov Plug-In Emissions | March 2012

The Smart Jitney: Rapid Realistic Transport | February 2012

The EPA’s Flawed 2013 Window Sticker | February 2012

History and Status of the Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) | January 2012

The Plug-In Scam: GM and EPA Misrepresentation of the PHEV | January 2012

Next »

Presentations

Part 1: Introduction to Plug-In Folly – The Misrepresentation of the Electric Car

Part 2: The Battery Electric Car

Part 3: A Look at MPGe Metrics

Part 4: The Plug-In Hybrid Car

Part 5: Conclusion

Primary Sidebar

Spinning Our Wheels (2010)

by Pat Murphy

Spinning Our Wheels by Pat Murphy
Click on Image to Purchase

Related Car Sites

  • Center for Transportation Analysis, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
  • EPA Light-Duty Automotive Technology, Carbon Dioxide Emissions, and Fuel Economy Trends
  • EV Sales
  • Green Car Congress
  • HybridCars
  • Inside EVs
  • Transportation Energy Data Book

Back to Home page

Footer

Contact

Pat Murphy and Faith Morgan
Post Office Box 207
Yellow Springs, Ohio 45387
937-767-2103

Friends & Curtailers

Read stories about people who are modeling curtailing.

Donations

Your donations help us bring precise, up-to-date information to people working towards climate healing.

©2023 Plan Curtail
All rights reserved worldwide